San Jose
– Pete Cipolla, the embattled general manager of the Valley
Transportation Authority, has agreed to resign his post. Cipolla’s
retirement agreement, which will be considered by the VTA’s board
of directors at their Jan. 6 meeting, calls for him to cease
full-time employment on June 30.
San Jose – Pete Cipolla, the embattled general manager of the Valley Transportation Authority, has agreed to resign his post.
Cipolla’s retirement agreement, which will be considered by the VTA’s board of directors at their Jan. 6 meeting, calls for him to cease full-time employment on June 30.
Cipolla has presided over the VTA since its inception about 10 years ago.
Rumors about his possible dismissal by the VTA board have been flying for weeks. The VTA has come under increasing criticism for a series of service cuts and delays in new projects, all stemming from funding shortages, which have now put the BART to San Jose project at risk.
San Jose Mayor Ron Gonzales, rumored to be behind efforts to oust Cipolla, has been an ardent proponent of the extension. San Jose officials occupy five of the VTA board’s 12 seats.
Cipolla and Gonzales could not be reached for comment Monday night. Nor could Santa Clara County Supervisor Don Gage, who is current president of the VTA board.
In December, Gage called the speculation swirling around Cipolla “disgusting,” and said that nothing in his performance evaluations merited dismissal.
